Everything Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman said after the Sugar Bowl

After Notre Dame football’s 23-10 win over Georgia in the Sugar Bowl, coach Marcus Freeman spoke to the media in his postgame news conference. Here’s everything he said.

Opening statement

“I think I said this after the game, but I’m so proud of this program, the team, for the work they put into obtaining the result that we got tonight.

“I’ve been reminding them the last 10 days as we prepared, this will be a 60-plus-minute fight. Georgia’s been down in nine games this year, and they find a way to come back and win. And so, they had that mentality.

“Our coaches called the game aggressive. Our players executed, put everything on the line for this university and this football team. I’m really proud of them. Proud of the way they handled the events of the last 24 hours.

“I want to make sure I, again, send our condolences on behalf of our university and our football program to everyone that was affected by the tragedy. They had to be able to still get ready for this game with the natural emotions that come into each individual that happened after the tragedy.

“So, I’m proud of the way they prepared. They stayed steady, and they went out, and they did a great job.”

On how extraordinary the experience was of this week, the swing of emotions, the team’s mood Wednesday and how he addressed that getting ready for the game

“Yeah. Yesterday morning, we woke up, and we had heard there was some type of incident. I don’t think we all knew the details, but we were getting ready to play a game. By the time we had a break and we had lunch, we found out that the game was postponed.

“Then we found out more details. I think once you found out more details about the tragedy, the emotions took over each individual differently. But they handled it spectacularly, and they prepared.

“We spent some time together. I think that’s what you do in tough moments. You want to spend time with family, and that’s what we are. But they found a way to get prepared for this opportunity and refocus.

“Again, it’s unprecedented. Life — you know, I told them this morning, there’s things in life that are unpredictable. The ability to handle those unpredictable things determine the success. They handled this incident, this change, but they handled everything that was thrown at them in an unbelievable way.”

On being one of two Black coaches in the playoff alongside Penn State coach James Franklin

“Again, you’re very grateful. It’s a reminder that you are a representation for many others and many of our players that look the same way I do. Your color shouldn’t matter. The evidence of your work should.

“But it takes everybody. That’s what I continue to remind myself. When people will try to point the finger at you, it’s a great reminder of you’re not in this position without everybody, without all these guys. And that’s what I told them in the locker room.

“I couldn’t get off that stage fast enough because everybody couldn’t be up there. It’s about the team. It’s about everybody who puts everything they have into making sure that we can achieve that success.

“So, it’s a great honor. It’s a privilege. But again, as the head coach of this place, I understand we’re not in this position unless everybody in this program gets their job done.”

On whether playing on Dec. 20 gave Notre Dame a competitive advantage over Georgia since they had not played since Dec. 7

“No. I don’t. I think whatever circumstances you’re given, you make the most of them. If we would have had a first-round bye, I would have been the first one to say, ‘Hey, this is great for us. We didn’t. It’s great for us.

“We are always a glass-half-full group. Whatever circumstances are thrown at us, we’re going to take advantage of it and prepare and maximize the opportunity ahead of us. So, that’s what they did.

“The first game had nothing to do with this game. It was the preparation that they put into this week and this game and the performance that they put on.

“But I don’t believe in my heart the first game had anything to do with this one. It was about the preparation they did after the first game.”

On the fourth-down call toward the end deep in their own territory and how that aggressiveness helped them reach this point

“It’s a mentality. That situation that happened in the fourth quarter was something we practiced. I think the performance was a reflection of that.

“We had a lot of confidence in the ability to be able to do that, and we had a plan. That’s the aggressiveness in terms of our preparation that I want our program to have, and again, out there when it matters the most.

“So, that’s got to be one of our edges, is that we are going to be an aggressive group and not fear making mistakes. Not fear, ‘Hey, it didn’t go your way.’ We went for it on fourth and one. We didn’t execute. ‘Okay, here we go, defense, and they got a stop.’

“So, that’s how I want this group to attack our preparation and attack performance when we have the opportunity.”

On why they had such success on defense

“Well, we had three keys to victory on defense, and number one was to stop the run. We didn’t believe that we could lose this game by passing yards, but we could lose if we don’t stop the run. The defense did an amazing job at stopping the run. That put them in some difficult third-down situations.

“Then another key to victory was takeaways. The defense got two takeaways, a couple turnovers on downs, which were huge. They were relentless.

“The one drive, I wasn’t too concerned because a couple of their big plays were uncharacteristic defensive mistakes. It was, we didn’t get a call, this guy didn’t get the check. That doesn’t happen to this group often. I said, ‘Okay, we’re good. Get it fixed. Go back out there. When they get the next opportunity, we’ll be fine. They responded in a great way.'”

On Notre Dame scoring 17 points in 54 seconds, and the halftime message

“Yeah, it was a heavyweight fight. The entire game was. But that first half, it was 3-3. First of all, (graduate kicker) Mitch Jeter did an amazing job today with field goals, his confidence. He had a great week of prep.

“Then it becomes 6-3 us. The forced fumble right before the half. Then our offense being aggressive and opportunistic and capitalizing off of that as we go into half was huge.

“What we didn’t want to do — I think it was a 10-point lead at the half — I didn’t want to ‘survive.’ That’s the natural tendency in a big game. You’re up 10 versus a really good team to say, ‘Let’s survive.’ No, ‘Let’s be aggressive.’

“I didn’t know we were going to come out of the locker room and score a kickoff return touchdown, but that helped.

“Again, it was — that middle eight is something we often talk about. The ability to close the half in that way and to start the half — the second half with a kickoff return touchdown was huge for the outcome of the game.”

On holding an SEC team to 10 points

“I love the way this group responds. There was a couple big plays that Georgia made. They’re a really good team and a good offense. This group just responds. We always say ‘reload.’ Like, this play is the only thing that matters. That’s the only thing consistent in a game: this play is the only thing that matters.

“What you see is if somebody gives up the big play, they’re able to reload and get their minds right for this play.

“That was a reflection of the red-zone defense, the big fourth-down stops. It’s a great group. They’ve got great leadership, great players. And they’re doing a heck of a job.”

On what it says about Louisiana products LB Jaiden Ausberry and DB Jordan Clark to make plays considering a tragedy that happened in their home state

“Yeah, they were extremely excited to come home and perform.

“There was a time yesterday evening that I wanted our players to spend some time with their families that were here. Being a parent myself, in times of tragedy, you want to be around your children.

“I gave the players from about 6 to 9 last night just a chance to go be with your family, if they’re in town. I think that helped the parents as much as it helped the players to be around each other and to help them reset and get their mind into a place that it needed to be for today.

“But those two guys have been brilliant all year, and they did a good job in their hometown.”

On how satisfying it is for him as a coach when you see all three phases clicking on all cylinders

“Yeah, that’s what it takes to win versus Georgia in the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoffs. It’s going to take that. It’s not going to be one or two phases. If we expect to continue to move forward in the College Football Playoffs, it’s going to take all three phases.

“We feel strongly about all three phases. But that’s what it’s going to take, and it was a great performance today. Now we’ve got to get some things cleaned up, find a way to get better in this week of practice.

“Then we’ve got another opportunity to go out there and perform in all three phases here on Jan 9th, I think, at the Orange Bowl.”

On big of a win this is for the Notre Dame program and how much pride he takes in what they’ve done this year

“The passion that Notre Dame fans have for this place and this football program is tremendous, and that’s why a lot of us are here. We want to be at a place that has high expectations that their fans are passionate about it. The administration and everybody are aligned in terms of putting all their efforts into helping this place succeed.

“So, it’s an honor, you know? And we want it as bad as our fans want it.

“What you want doesn’t matter. It’s what you’re willing to do, and that’s what we’ve got to continue to focus on, the work that it takes to achieve that outcome that we all want so badly.

“So, we’re going to get back to work. You know me. We’re going to get on this plane. Let’s watch it and find ways to improve and look at the schedule.

“I might give them tomorrow off, maybe. Give them a chance to reset. We’ve got to start game-planning for a tough opponent. I saw a little bit of the Penn State game, and it’s going to be a great challenge for us. I’m excited for it.”

On making history by being the first team to win a College Football Playoff quarterfinal game in New Orleans

“It’s an honor. This isn’t about me. I try to make sure that’s clear. I’m blessed to be in a position to be the leader of this program, but I am blessed to be around some of the greatest individuals that you could ask for.

“These individuals all commit to this place, no matter what their role is. And they give everything they can to seeing us have that success. I’m a part of it. Yes, I’m the leader. I’m a part of a big group that we all have to put the work in.

“So, I hope every person in this program feels a part of that, the record of wins and whatever there is. I just love being on the journey with these guys. I love motivating them. And I love pushing them. I love challenging them in different ways because they just continue to respond in any way that you challenge them.

“It’s an honor and a privilege and a lot of fun to be on this journey together.”

On what it means for Notre Dame defensive end RJ Oben to make a play of magnitude

“These guys don’t always control the amount of plays they get. Those are determined by your coaching staff in terms of what they need out of your role for this game. RJ is a guy that no matter what the role is that’s determined for him, he puts everything into it.

“When you have that mindset and you have that work ethic, good things like what happened today happen to you. And if you’re sitting here and complaining about why you’re not playing more than the next guy, then you know what? You’re not putting everything into making the most out of your opportunity.

“RJ Oben is a guy that makes the most out of every opportunity he gets.”